This WordPress.com site is about our life and experiences after retiring in San Clemente Ecuador

Log Jam at the Boca

I just noticed the date and remembered one of the only Shakespeare quotes I know, “Beware the ides of March.” But, assuming you are not a malevolent Roman dictator, I reckon you should make it through the day alive. Still, use a bit of caution.

Our friends Meta and Dave live out near the mouth of the Portoviejo river (Boca). Meta came to Mary’s art class yesterday and mentioned that there was an unusual amount of wood and debris along the shore near the boca that had washed down stream. Another friend of ours named Bernie has lived right at the boca for seven years or more and he told Meta that he has never seen the logs and debris pile up like that before.

My curiosity was piqued, so I rode back out to the boca with Meta when she left to go home.

This is what happens after three straight years of less than average rainfall when heavy rainfall upstream works to free up fallen trees and refuge from all of the side streams and river banks.

To make matters worse, a series of unusually high tides (called an aguaje) worked to push the flotsam high up onto the bank making areas that are generally sandy beaches log piles.

Those with property along the beach are hoping that the city or other local government will work to clear away this wood and garbage before the Easter week rush that generally brings crowds of people to the beach community. I suggested that they should sponsor a huge bonfire! That would be spectacular and we could probably see the blaze from our home three miles away!

But, not everyone is disappointed with the pile up. This young man was out filling huge bags with recyclable plastic bottles.

He already had a couple of full bags up near the roadway and seemed to be happily gathering a windfall worth of bottles he could sell.

Also the flow picked up any dead or dying animals along the shore and brought them out for a virtual vulture buffet!

The birds argued amongst themselves battling for scraps until this dog got into the act.

Come on now, there is plenty for everyone!

Picking through the debris on the beaches is what our friend Lisa calls shopping at Playamart. I guess this qualifies as a Playamart clearance sale!

Meta makes use of driftwood she discovers with many arts and craft works.

This old west style sign posts the mileage to all of Meta and Dave’s former homes and adorns their home near the boca in San Jacinto, Ecuador. Proving once again that, “One man’s garbage is another man’s treasure.”

8 Responses

Wow, that’s a pile of wood, John. Indeed, what bon fire that would be. Not only could you see it from your house, you could see it from space! But yeah, any thing that happens like that, is an opportunity really to either be grumpy about it, or to embrace it. Seems like most folk in Ecuador tend for the latter.And that’s really cool.

Very good point. To get aggravated about wood washing downstream after unusually heavy rains makes about as much sense as getting mad at gravity. It is just going to happen! I would not be surprised if some industrious person gets busy and collects the wood to make carbon for future barbecue fuel. Like the young man with the bottles, might as well see it as a windfall as opposed to a problem. Life is good!

yay.. it took long enough to get a page to load so i can comment! yes, i immediately thught, ‘yes! new inventory at playamart!’ when i see my friends about to burn a big pile of driftwood i say, ‘NOOOOOOOOO! You’re about to burn tables and chairs and beds and —-” and they laugh….

so sorry i’ve been so silent.. between joe’s death, julie’s illness, and 100+ hectares, two houses and jack-in-the beanstalk growth of limbs/grasses etc, there are not enough hours in each day.

i hope that you’re both feeling well and are dodging the mosquito-borne viruses.. is manabi pretty clear right now?

Oh, Lisa it is so good to hear from you again. We know how busy you are up there with spotty internet service, so do not worry about responding to posts. We will get together one of these days and catch up. We watched Jimmy and Brooke leave this morning after their whirlwind visit. I will be doing a post to record some of the fun we had, but it was a great visit. We just hope more of the family will be able to come and visit soon.